On-line web accessed energy meter

ABSTRACT

An electrical metering system capable of performing multiple metering functions, collecting data, and wirelessly provides the collected metering data to a utility operator. In the electrical metering system, at least one computing device for initiating a request for data. A first modem connects the computing device to an infrastructure. A wireless embedded modem for wirelessly connects an electric meter to an infrastructure, and the wireless electric modem receives a request from the computing device and wirelessly transmits the metering data to the computing device, thereby initiating the request.

PRIORITY

This application is a continuation application of U.S. application Ser.No. 11/998,920, filed Dec. 3, 2007, which is a continuation applicationof U.S. application Ser. No. 10/969,706, filed Oct. 20, 2004, now U.S.Pat. No. 7,304,586, entitled “ON-LINE WEB ACCESSED ENERGY METER”, thecontents of which are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to utility revenue meters for measuringusage and quality of electrical power in an electrical powerdistribution network. In particular, the present invention relates toutility revenue meters that are connected to the Internet via wirelessmeans.

2. Discussion of the Related Art

With proliferation of electrically powered devices and systems, there isan increasing need to accurately and precisely measure and monitor thequality of the electrical power supplying these devices and systems.Electric utility companies (“utilities”) track electric usage bycustomers by using electrical energy meters. These meters track theamount of energy consumed at a particular location. These locationsrange from power substations, to commercial businesses, to residentialhomes. The electric utility companies use the energy meters to chargecustomers for their power consumption, i.e. revenue metering.

A popular type of energy meter is the socket-type energy meter. As itsname implies, the meter itself plugs into a socket for easyinstallation, removal, and replacement. Other meter installationsinclude panel mounted, switchboard mounted, and circuit breaker mounted.Typically the energy meter connects between utility power linessupplying electricity and a usage point, namely a residence orcommercial place of business. Though not typical, an energy meter mayalso be placed at a point within the utility's power grid to monitorpower flowing through that point for distribution, power loss, orcapacity monitoring. Also, energy meters that handle sub-meteringfunctions can be used to monitor internal customer usage.

Traditionally, energy meters used mechanical means to track the amountof consumed power. The inductive spinning disk energy meter is stillcommonly used. The spinning disk drives mechanical counters that trackthe power consumption information. Newer to the market are electronicenergy meters based on solid-state microprocessor applications.Electronic meters have replaced the older mechanical meters, and utilizedigital sampling of the voltage and current waveforms to generate powerconsumption information. In addition to monitoring power consumption,electronic meters can also monitor and calculate power quality, that is,voltage, current, real power, reactive power, apparent power, etc. Thesepower quality measurements and calculations are displayed on an outputdisplay device on the meter.

While electrical utility companies currently use devices to measure theamount of electrical power used by both residential and commercialfacilities and the quality of electrical power in an electrical powerdistribution network, these devices generally do not allow for readingsto be made automatically via some remote means. The meter readings arecollected in the same manner they were collected in the past, a personreads and reports the information displayed on the meter.

In more recent developments, limited power consumption information canbe transmitted from the energy meter to the utility through the use oftelephone communications circuitry contained either within or externalto the meter. These developments are advantageous to the utility companyin that they reduce the need for employees being dispatched to theremote locations to collect the power consumption information. Astandard modem receives raw power consumption information from theenergy meter and transmits the information to the utility company viatelephone lines.

FIG. 1 illustrates a house or an institution 10 having a revenue meter12 connected to a modem 14. The modem 14 is, in turn, connected to atelephone line 16. In the house or an institution 10, the telephone line16 may be a dedicated line, i.e., only the modem 14 is connected to it,or a shared line, for example, with one or more telephones 18 connectedto the same line 16 via a telephone jack 17. The telephone line 16 isconnected to the telephone infrastructure or grid 28 being managed by atelephone company 26. Similarly, on the utility side, the utilitycompany or a department entrusted to receive meter readings 20 includesat least one computer 22 connected to a modem 24, which is connected tothe telephone line 16.

While this represents an improvement over past techniques, this methodhas proven to be costly and unreliable, as there is a need for dedicatedtelephone line connection and line maintenance, which is expensive. Whenequipment malfunctions an employee must be dispatched to determine thereason for the malfunction and then a specialist must be sent in to fixit. Therefore, there exists a need for a device, which can accurately,inexpensively, and timely provide measurements, e.g., power consumptioninformation, recorded by a common energy or energy meter.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide anelectronic energy meter that can deliver power consumption informationreadings from residential and commercial facilities to electricalutility companies.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an electronicenergy meter that provides power consumption information to theelectrical utility companies automatically via a remote means.

It is yet another object of the present invention to provide anelectronic energy meter that provides power consumption information tothe electrical utility companies without involvement of human meterreaders and installation of modems and telephone lines.

The present invention provides an electric energy meter for providingreal time revenue metering using wireless or cell phone technology. Thepresent invention describes an electrical metering system capable ofperforming multiple metering functions, collecting data, and wirelesslyprovides the collected metering data to a utility operator is disclosed.The electrical metering system comprising at least one computing devicefor initiating a request for data; a first modem for connecting thecomputing device to an infrastructure; a wireless embedded modem forwirelessly connecting an electric meter to an infrastructure, whereinthe wireless electric modem receives a request from the computing deviceand wirelessly transmits the metering data to the computing devicethereby initiating the request.

The present application describes three infrastructure variations hereinbelow. However, additional combinations and variations of the describedinfrastructure will be understood by those skilled in the art. Theinvention describes establishing communication between the embeddedwireless modem and the computing device over the followinginfrastructures:

1. The infrastructure comprises a telephone infrastructure includingtelephone landlines operated by at least one telephone company and acell phone infrastructure including cell phone relay stations operatedby at least one cell service provider. The embedded wireless modemutilizing industry standard interface protocols used within the cellphone industry to communicate with the computing device.

2. The infrastructure comprises a wide area network, e.g., the Internet.The embedded wireless modem utilizing industry standard interfaceprotocols, for example, 802.11a and 802.11b, to communicate with thecomputing device.

3. The infrastructure further comprises the wide area network and acarrier network infrastructure including a broadcasting means operatedby at least one carrier network provider. The embedded wireless modemutilizing industry standard interface protocols selected from GeneralPacket Radio Service (GPRS), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), andWideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) to communicate with thecomputing device.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present invention is further explained by way of example and withreference to the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of interconnectivity between an energy meter and autility for the purpose of collecting power usage data according toprior art;

FIG. 2 is a diagram of interconnectivity between an energy meter and autility for the purpose of collecting power usage data, using thetelephone and a cell phone infrastructures, according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a diagram of interconnectivity between an energy meter and autility for the purpose of collecting power usage data, using theInternet and a carrier network infrastructures, according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 4 is a diagram of interconnectivity between an energy meter and autility for the purpose of collecting power usage data, using theInternet infrastructure, according to the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a power quality and revenue meter accordingto an embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of the processor functions of apower quality and revenue meter system shown in FIG. 5 according to anembodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention provides an electric energy meter for providingreal time revenue metering using wireless or cell phone technology todeliver information to a computing device on a network, e.g., anInternet website, managed by an electrical utility company or itsaffiliates. The operation of the electric energy meter of the presentinvention is described in a co-owned U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,563, titled“Electronic Energy meter”, the contents of which are incorporated hereinby reference.

Portions of U.S. Pat. No. 6,751,563 will be reproduced here. FIG. 5 is ablock diagram of a web server power quality and revenue meter accordingto an embodiment of the present invention. Shown in FIG. 5 are powerquality and revenue meter (meter) 110. The meter is connected to monitorelectric distribution power lines (not shown), to monitor voltage andcurrent at the point of connection. Included therein is digital sampler120 for digitally sampling the voltage and current of the power beingsupplied to a customer or monitored at the point of the seriesconnection in the power grid. Digital sampler 120 digitally samples thevoltage and current. The digital samples are then forwarded to processor130 for processing. Also connected to processor 130 is external deviceinterface 140 for providing an interface for external devices 150 toconnect to meter 110. These external devices might include other powermeters, sub-station control circuitry, on/off switches, etc. Processor130 receives data packets from digital sampler 120 and external devices150, and processes the data packets according to user defined orpredefined requirements. A memory 160 is connected to processor 130 forstoring data packets and program algorithms, and to assist in processingfunctions of processor 130. These processing functions include the powerquality data and revenue calculations, as well as formatting data intodifferent protocols which will be described later in detail. Processor130 provides processed data to network 180 through network interface170. Network 180 can be the Internet, the World Wide Web (WWW), anintranet, a wide area network (WAN), or local area network (LAN), amongothers. In the preferred embodiment, the network interface converts thedata to an Ethernet TCP/IP format. The use of the Ethernet TCP/IP formatallows multiple users to access the power meter simultaneously. In alike fashion, network interface 170 might be comprised of a modem, cableconnection, or other devices that provide formatting functions.Computers 190-192 are shown connected to network 180.

A web server program (web server) is contained in memory 160, andaccessed through network interface 170. The web server provides realtime data through any known web server interface format. For example,popular web server interface formats consist of HTML and XML formats.The actual format of the programming language used is not essential tothe present invention, in that any web server format can be incorporatedherein. The web server provides a user friendly interface for the userto interact with the meter 110. The user can have various access levelsto enter limits for e-mail alarms. Additionally, the user can beprovided the data in a multiple of formats including raw data, bargraph, charts, etc. The currently used HTML or XML programming languagesprovide for easy programming and user friendly user interfaces.

The operation of the device of FIG. 5 will now be described. Digitalsampler 120 samples the voltage and current at and flowing through thepoint of connection, or sampling point. The voltage and currentreadings, in the form of data packets, are forwarded to processor 130where they undergo various power calculations. Processor 130 calculates,for example, instantaneous voltage and current, real power, reactivepower, and apparent power. The processing algorithms can bepreprogrammed into memory 160, uploaded by an end user, or performed atthe end-user's location. The calculations performed by processor 130 arenot meant to be all inclusive, as the processor can be programmed toprovide any number of preprogrammed or user defined calculations. Inaddition to performing the calculations, processor 130 sends the packetdata to memory 160 to be stored for future access. As digital sampler120 is sampling the voltage and current at the sampling point, externaldevice 150 can be feeding parallel information to processor 130 throughexternal device interface 140. This external device packet data would beprocessed and stored in a similar manner as the digital sampler packetdata. Processor 130 then formats the processed data into various networkprotocols and formats. The protocols and formats can, for example,consist of the web server HTML or XML formats, Modbus TCP, RS-485, FTPor e-mail. Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) can also be usedto assign IP addresses. The network formatted data is now available tousers at computers 190-192 through network 180, that connects to meter10 at the network interface 170.

In the preferred embodiment of the present invention, network interface170 is an Ethernet interface that supports, for example, 100 base-T or10 base-T communications. This type of network interface can send andreceive data packets between WAN connections and/or LAN connections andthe meter 110. This type of network interface allows for situations, forexample, where the web server may be accessed by one user while anotheruser is communicating via the Modbus TCP, and a third user may bedownloading a stored data file via FTP. The ability to provide access tothe meter by multiple users, simultaneously, is a great advantage overthe prior art. This can allow for a utility company's customer servicepersonnel, a customer and maintenance personnel to simultaneously andinteractively monitor and diagnose possible problems with the powerservice.

FIG. 6 is a functional block diagram of processor 130 of the web serverpower quality and revenue meter system according to the embodiment ofthe present invention. FIG. 6 illustrates the functional processingstructure of processor 130. Processor 130 is shown containing four mainprocessing functions. Processing 220 can be realized in various memoryconfigurations, and are not limited to any one configuration. Thefunctions shown are illustrative and not meant to be inclusive of allpossible functions performed by processor 130. Power Quality and RevenueMetering functions (metering functions) 210 consists of a complete setof functions which are needed for power quality and revenue metering.Packet data collected by digital sampler 120 is transmitted to processor130. Processor 130 calculates, for example, power reactive power,apparent power, and power factor. The metering function 210 responds tocommands via the network or other interfaces supported by the meter.External Device Routing Functions 230 handle the interfacing between theexternal device 150 and meter 110. Raw data from external device 150 isfed into meter 110. The external device 150 is assigned a particularaddress. If more than one external device is connected to meter 110,each device will be assigned a unique particular address.

Referring again to FIG. 5, network interface 170 can support, forexample, either 100 base-T or 10 base-T communications, and receives andsends data packet between a wide area network (WAN) connection and/orlocal area network (LAN) connection and the meter. The Network ProtocolFunctions of meter 110 are executed by processor 130 which executesmultiple networking tasks that are running concurrently. As shown inFIG. 6, these include, but are not limited to, the following networktasks included in network protocol functions 250: e-mail 260, web server270, Modbus TCP 280, FTP 290, and DHCP 300. The e-mail 260 networkprotocol function can be utilized to send e-mail messages via thenetwork 180 to a user to, for example, notify the user of an emergencysituation or if the power consumption reaches a user-set or pre-set highlevel threshold.

As the processor receives packets of data it identifies the networkprocessing necessary for the packet by the port number associated withthe packet. The processor allocates the packet to a task as a functionof the port number. Since each task is running independently the meter110 can accept different types of requests concurrently and process themtransparently from each other. For example, the web server may beaccessed by one user while another user is communicating via Modbus TCPand at the same time a third user may download a log file via FTP.

The Network to Meter Protocol Conversion Function 240 is used to formatand protocol convert the different network protocol messages to a commonformat understood by the other functional sections of meter 110. Afterthe basic network processing of the packet of data, any “commands” ordata which are to be passed to other functional sections of meter 110are formatted and protocol converted to a common format for processingby the Network to Meter Protocol Conversion Function 240. Similarly,commands or data coming from the meter for transfer over the network arepre-processed by this function into the proper format before being sentto the appropriate network task for transmission over the network. Inaddition this function first protocol converts and then routes data andcommands between the meter and external devices.

Numerous types of wireless Ethernet connections can be used to performthe objects of the present invention. These types can be classified interms of the type of a connection to the network and the configurationand capability of the utility revenue meter. In general, the proposedimplementation can be used on any network that includes wireless modems.The following are some examples of proposed configurations.

Dial-Up Connection

FIG. 2 illustrates a computing device 22, e.g., a computer or a handheld wireless device that may be used to retrieve information form arevenue meter 12. A revenue meter 12 is located within or outside ahouse or an institution 10 for metering utility provided resources,e.g., electrical power. A connection between the computing device 22 andthe revenue meter 12 may be established via a dial-up using wired lines28, such as a telephone infrastructure and wireless cell technology. Atelephone infrastructure or grid 28, managed by a telephone company 26may be used together with the wireless grid infrastructure 40 includingCell Relay stations 42 managed by a cell phone service provider. It isnoted that the telephone infrastructure or grid 28 may be discardedwhere the computing device 22 has direct access to the wireless gridinfrastructure 40.

The computing device 22 may be located anywhere the telephone and cellinfrastructures 26 and 40 reaches. This may be on the premises of autility company itself or at any department or agency entrusted withreceiving meter readings. The connection between the computing device 22and the revenue meter 12 may be established via a dial-up process usinga wireless modem 34 to respond to a signal from the computing device 22relayed by a cell relay station 42.

The wireless embedded modem 34 can communicate with the revenue metervia hard wired communication means 36, such as, a serial connection, theEthernet, a universal serial bus (USB), and a faster version of USB,USB2, or using wireless means, for example, 802.11 and similarprotocols. The meter peripheral device's 38 communicates with therevenue meter 12 via industry standard communication protocols, such as,Modbus remote terminal unit (RTU) from the Modicon Inc., DNP etc., sothat the meter peripheral device 38 can act as a server for any revenuemeters 12 utilizing industry standard interfaces and protocols. Theperipheral device 38 presents the collected meter readings and data tothe wireless modem 34 to be forwarded to the computing device 22 using abrowser program.

The revenue meter 12 or a peripheral device 38 attached to the revenuemeter manage the wireless modem 34, e.g., controlling the modem'sreadiness for a dial-up session established by the computing device 22.Additionally, the revenue meter 12 or the peripheral device 38 may beaccessed via the wireless modem 34 and used as a server for providingrevenue meter's readings and other relevant data to the computing device22. An interface program, e.g., a browser may be used on the revenuemeter 12 or the peripheral device 38 to send and receive data.

In this mode, after the connection between the embedded wireless modem34 and the computing device 22 is established, the revenue meter 32 orthe meter peripheral device 38 control the embedded wireless modem 34maintaining its readiness for a dial-up session. Such a session may beinitiated by the computing device 42 at any time.

Wireless Packet Data Connection

In another embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 3, thewireless modem 34 communicates with the computing device 22 via acarrier network 54 using various protocols, e.g., a General Packet RadioService (GPRS), Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA), Wideband CodeDivision Multiple Access (WCDMA) etc., to provide the revenue meterinformation collected by the revenue meter 12. In this embodiment, thecarrier network 54 is utilized in conjunction with packet data networks,such as the Internet.

A connection between computing device 22, e.g., a computer or a handheld wireless device and the revenue meter 12 may be established via acarrier network 54. The computing device 22 uses a dial-up modem 24 orsome other means to access an Internet service provider (ISP) and acommon browser program, e.g., a Microsoft Explorer, to connect to theInternet 50, and through it to the carrier network 54. The dial-up modem24 can be a digital subscriber line (DSL) modem or a cable modem and canconnect to the Internet via the cable, satellite, or the telephoneinfrastructure, including hot spots located within appropriate distancefrom the modem 24. The modem 24 may be built into the computing device22.

The carrier network 54 may include a carrier network provider facility52, a broadcasting means 56, e.g., a broadcasting tower, a satellite,etc., and some means of access to the Internet 50. The computing device22 may be located anywhere, the only requirement is that it has anability and means to connect to the Internet 50. The computing device 22may be located on the premises of a utility company itself or at anydepartment or agency entrusted with receiving meter readings.

A request for information from the computing device 22 is forwarded overthe Internet 50 to the carrier network provider facility 52, where therequest is processed and transmitted via the broadcasting means 56 tothe wireless embedded modem 34. The wireless embedded modem 34 cancommunicate with the revenue meter via hard wired communication means36, such as, a serial connection, the Ethernet, a universal serial bus(USB), and a faster version of USB, USB2, or using wireless means, forexample, 802.11 and similar protocols.

The revenue meter 12 or a peripheral device 38 attached to the revenuemeter, manages the wireless modem 34, e.g., control the modem'sreadiness to send information to the computing device 22. Additionally,the revenue meter 12 or the peripheral device 38 may perform as a serverfor providing revenue meter's readings and other relevant data to thecomputing device 22. An interface program, e.g., a browser, may be usedto send and receive data.

Hot Spots

In another embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG. 4, thewireless modem 34 communicates with the computing device 22 via theInternet 50 to provide information collected by the revenue meter 12. Inthis embodiment, the wireless modem 34 is accessed via a wireless accesspoint (802.11a or b) called a hot spot 60, which covers a specificgeographic boundary. The hot spots are usually set up for Internetaccess by devices with wireless connectivity. Hot spots can be locatedjust about anywhere, and the maximum connectivity distance is beingconstantly improved.

Although the illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure havebeen described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it isto be understood that the disclosure is not limited to those preciseembodiments, and that various other changes and modifications may beaffected therein by one skilled in the art. That is, those skilled inthe art will envision other modifications within the scope and spirit ofthe claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system for collecting data and wirelesslyproviding the collected data to a remote operator, the systemcomprising: at least one computing device for initiating a request fordata; a first communications device for connecting the computing deviceto an infrastructure; at least one device comprising: a digital samplerconfigured for sampling at least one parameter; at least one processorconfigured to collect the at least one parameter and generate data fromthe sampled at least one parameter, wherein the at least one processoris configured to act as a server for the at least one device and isfurther configured for presenting the collected and generated data inthe form of web pages; and a wireless communications device coupled tothe at least one device and for wirelessly connecting the at least onedevice to the infrastructure, wherein the wireless communications devicereceives a request from the computing device and wirelessly transmitsthe collected and generated metering data to the computing deviceinitiating the request, wherein the computing device accesses thecollected and generated data via a software program.
 2. The system ofclaim 1, wherein the infrastructure comprises a telephone infrastructureincluding telephone landlines coupled to the at least one computingdevice and a cell phone infrastructure including cell phone relaystations coupling the telephone infrastructure to the wireless embeddedmodem.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein the infrastructure comprises awide area network.
 4. The system of claim 3, wherein the infrastructurefurther comprises a carrier network infrastructure including abroadcasting means operated by at least one carrier network provider. 5.The system of claim 3, wherein the wide area network is the Internet. 6.The system of claim 1, wherein the computing device is selected from oneof a desktop personal computer, a laptop computer, a cell phone, a handheld computing device.
 7. The system of claim 6, wherein the computingdevice uses a web browsing program to initiate the request for data. 8.The system of claim 1, further comprising a communication means forconnecting the wireless communications device to the at least oneprocessor, the communication means being selected from hard wired orwireless means.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the hard wired meansis selected from one of a serial connection, the Ethernet, and auniversal serial bus (USB).
 10. The system of claim 8, wherein thewireless means utilizes 802.11 protocol.
 11. The system of claim 1,wherein the at least one processor utilizes metering protocols selectedfrom Modbus remote terminal unit (RTU) and DNP to communicate to thewireless communications device.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein thewireless communications device operates on a protocol selected from thegroup consisting of General Packet Radio Service (GPRS), Code DivisionMultiple Access (CDMA), and Wideband Code Division Multiple Access(WCDMA) to communicate.
 13. The system of claim 1, wherein the wirelesscommunications device utilizes a 802.11 protocol to communicate.
 14. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the wireless communications device operateson a cellular network protocol.
 15. The system of claim 3, wherein thewide area network is Ethernet-based.
 16. The system of claim 15, whereinthe wide area network uses Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP) toassign an IP address to the modem.
 17. The system of claim 3, whereinthe wide area network includes at least one wireless access point andthe communications device connects to the infrastructure via the atleast one wireless access point.
 18. The system of claim 1, wherein theinfrastructure is a wide area network operating on TCP/IP.
 19. Thesystem of claim 18, wherein the server provides data to the wide areanetwork in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) or Extensible MarkupLanguage (XML).
 20. A device for measuring and monitoring at least oneparameter, the device comprising: a digital sampler configured forsampling at least one parameter; at least one processor configured tocollect the sampled at least one parameter and generate data from thesampled at least one parameter; a wireless embedded communicationsdevice configured for transmitting the data to a computing deviceresiding on an infrastructure; and wherein the at least one processoracts as a server for the device in managing the data and the connectionbetween the computing device, wherein the server provides data to thecomputing device via a network protocol, wherein the wireless embeddedcommunications device is coupled to the at least one processor via aserial protocol.